Gregory Livingston Harper (born June 1, 1956) is a former

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2009 to 2019. He is a member of the

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. The district includes the wealthier portions of the state capital, Jackson, along with most of that city's suburbs. Other cities in the district include Meridian, Natchez, Starkville, and Brookhaven. In January 2018, Harper announced he would retire from

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and not run for re-election.

Early life, education and career

Harper was born in

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the capital of and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, along with Raymond. The city had a population of 153,701 at t ...

. He spent eight years working as Chairman of the

Rankin County, Mississippi Rankin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The western border of the county is formed by the Pearl River. As of the 2010 census, the population was 141,617, making it the fourth-most populous county in Mississippi. Th ...

, and served as a delegate to the

2000 Republican National Convention The 2000 Republican National Convention convened at the First Union Center (now the Wells Fargo Center) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 31 to August 3, 2000. The 2000 delegates assembled at the convention nominated Texas Governor Geor ...

. He was appointed by the party as an observer during the controversial 2000 Florida presidential recount. Harper graduated from Mississippi College in 1978 with a degree in Chemistry and from the

University of Mississippi School of Law The University of Mississippi School of Law, also known as Ole Miss Law, is an ABA-accredited law school located on the campus of the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Mississippi. The School of Law offers the only dedicated aerospace law curr ...

in 1981. He has worked as a private practice attorney since receiving this degree. He was the prosecuting attorney for the cities of Brandon, Mississippi and

Richland, Mississippi Richland is a city in Rankin County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 6,912 at the 2010 census. It is a suburb of Jackson, and is part of the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Richland is located at (32.229844, ...

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

* Joint Committee of Congress on the Library (Chairman) * Committee on Energy and Commerce ** Subcommittee on Digital Commerce and Consumer Protection(Vice Chairman) ** Subcommittee on Environment and Economy * Committee on Ethics * Committee on House Administration (Chairman) ** Subcommittee on Elections

Caucus memberships

* Republican Study Committee * Congressional Arts Caucus *

Veterinary Medicine Caucus The Congressional Veterinary Medicine Caucus is a Congressional Member Organization within the United States Congress and is officially recognized by the Committee on House Administration. Information and purpose According to the Caucus's offici ...

* U.S.-Japan Caucus

Tenure

Harper introduced the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act (H.R. 2019; 113th Congress) into the House on May 16, 2013. The bill, which passed in both the House and the Senate, would end taxpayer contributions to the Presidential Election Campaign Fund and divert the money in that fund to pay for research into

pediatric cancer Childhood cancer is cancer in a child. About 80% of childhood cancer cases can be successfully treated thanks to modern medical treatments and optimal patient care. However, only about 10% of children diagnosed with cancer reside in high-income cou ...

through the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the lat ...

. The total funding for research would come to $126 million over 10 years. As of 2014, the national conventions got about 23% of their funding from the Presidential Election Campaign Fund. Harper was ranked as the 89th most bipartisan member of the U.S. House of Representatives during the

114th United States Congress The 114th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States of America federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from ...

(and the most bipartisan member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Mississippi) in the Bipartisan Index created by The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy. In December 2017, as chairman of the House Committee on Administration, Harper supported a review of overhauling the Congressional Accountability Act which makes it harder for victims of sexual harassment to come forward with allegations than victims in the private sector. Harper said a review was "long overdue".

Elections

Gregg Harper won the Republican nomination in Mississippi's 3rd congressional district on April 1, 2008 with 57% of the vote. This was tantamount to election in this heavily Republican district. He defeated his Democratic opponent, Joel Gill in the November General Election winning 63% of the vote.

Personal life

He is a deacon of Crossgates Baptist Church in Brandon, Mississippi, where he had also been a Sunday School teacher. He has a 31-year old son with

Fragile X syndrome Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is a genetic disorder characterized by mild-to-moderate intellectual disability. The average IQ in males with FXS is under 55, while about two thirds of affected females are intellectually disabled. Physical features ma ...

; as a Congressman, Harper started a congressional internship program for students with developmental disabilities through the Mason Life Program at George Mason University.

References

External links

* * * , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Harper, Gregg 1956 births 21st-century American politicians American prosecutors Baptists from Mississippi Lawyers from Jackson, Mississippi Living people Mississippi College alumni Politicians from Jackson, Mississippi People from Pearl, Mississippi Recipients of the Order of Brilliant Star Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi University of Mississippi alumni